One fine spring day, a phone call came from my son’s school. The voice croaked, “Stacey, your son has hurt his finger while swimming; he jammed it against the pool wall and needs to go to the doctor”. At that very moment I was in court, representing yet another victim and this call was the straw that broke the proverbial camel’s back. I could not take it anymore, the stress; the anxiety; the feeling inside of me as if someone had filled my belly with gasoline, and I was tied to a chair and could not move, but my system was revving out of control. It was more than I could bear. Grasping my cell phone in a white knuckled death grip, shaking with rage, I screamed, “I will be there to pick him up and he had better have broken his #%*@ arm, or I will break it for him.” Now, does this sound like the loving mother who adores her 14 year old son? Of course not, however, this was the sound of a woman whose hormones were spiraling out of control, and she just did not know it.

On the way to his school, I called a friend to console me. Alternately, I was sobbing, screaming, and then uncontrollably crying. He asked me, are you on your cell phone? What kind of stupid question is that when you are driving down the street, I thought? So my response was as equally as snide when I replied, “no, the extension cord on my home phone is really long.” It was that comment that prompted him to beg me, “please talk to your doctor when you get there about the possibility that you are going through the “CHANGE OF LIFE”. I thought, how could this be, I was only 39 years old. That dreaded journey did not happen until much later in life, or so I thought.

The doctor, at my insane insistence, put a cast on my son’s arm, even though it was not broken. My son removed the cast when he got home. The doctor also gave me hormone cream to rub on my tummy. Great, I thought, now I smell funny, and am still a lunatic. What was going on with me?

Exercise, it has been said, is the cure-all for many ailments, so I decided to train for a marathon walking race. Bear in mind that joining a group to train for a marathon in January was really insane, since I live in Michigan, and it is absolutely freezing in January. Through wind, snow, sleet and rain, I trained myself to walk as fast as I could. But wait, what was happening to my body? Instead of slimming down, I was plumping up. In just six months of training, walking a minimum of 15 miles a week, I gained 35 pounds!!! How nuts was that, I screamed as my plumping was validated by that traitor scale in my bathroom.

Back to the same doctor I went, who informed me that I was a closet eater and needed a “low fat” diet. But I told her that, “a bagel was my breakfast and a salad was my dinner and those two items were my total caloric intake for the day, how in the name of all that could I gain this much weight?” During this same time period I noticed that my neck was swollen, and I questioned her about that. Her reply was “it’s just muscle”. My spirits were crushed, and I quickly began to doubt myself and believed that I was losing my mind. Three months later I was diagnosed with a large tumor in my throat that destroyed my thyroid. After surgery, I was prescribed Synthroid. My endocrinologist kept adjusting my dosage, never getting it right. My TSH levels soared to 10 and then dropped to 0.001. My body was out of control, and neither I nor anyone around me was happy.

Mood swings, weight gain, fits of anger, anxiety, and to top it off, sleepless nights became the norm for my life. I begged God to help me figure this out. Doctors did not seem to care; they treated me as if I was a patient on an assembly line. They would not listen to my concerns, they did not give me a second thought, they just kept pushing drugs on me and telling me time and time again that, “you will be fine; there is nothing to worry about.”

However, one March night, God must have heard my prayers. While lying awake in the middle of the night, I saw Suzanne Somers on television talking about bio-identical hormones. I had never heard of them and listened intently. She described my symptoms, she described my life. The next day, I immediately purchased her book and read it front to back in one day. These bio-identical hormones seemed to be the answer to my prayers, but where could I find them?

The internet, another blessing in disguise was my answer. I plugged “bio-identical hormones” into the search engine, Google, and the Hotze Health and Wellness Center was the first hit. I scoured their website and devoured all it had to say. I needed them and immediately called them. Much to my surprise and delight, the receptionist was very informative and actually listened to me. Understanding my concerns and symptoms, she transferred me to a nurse. After speaking with the nurse, I believed she was an angel. Since I was from Michigan, my health care insurance would not cover the entire cost of the visit. My friend was so encouraged by my praises of Hotze, that he gave me the rest of the money for my trip.

My airline tickets and hotel stay were booked within five minutes, and I was on my way. After having several tests conducted at home (my insurance would pay for these), I took all my results and headed for Houston, Texas, praying that this would be the answer to my prayers. I was scared, yet hopeful.

Upon arrival at the Center, I was welcomed with open arms by the staff. My visit with Dr. Ellsworth was very informative. He listened, he cared, he understood. My hormonal imbalance was coming to a screeching halt. His nurse explained dietary supplements to me and told me about a new thyroid medication. I was almost overwhelmed as it was so much to digest. Not to fear, they gave me literature and articles to read. My next stop was the pharmacist. Instructed by the pharmacist to stop taking my Synthroid, I was panicked. I knew that stopping that medication could kill me. What was I doing? Could I trust these people? Would I finally die?

With every ounce of courage I could muster, I stopped my current medication regime and began the Hotze regimen. Day one came and went, and I was still alive, but did not feel any different. Day two came and my anxiety seemed to be lessening, and my mood was much calmer. Day three came and I only woke up twice that night. By the end of the first week, I was sleeping the night through, something I had not done in over two years. My nerves had calmed down, and my system was not revving like a drag racer waiting for the green light. Gosh, it was working, I thought. My son noticed that he could talk to me without getting his head bitten off. My friend said, “This is the girl I met so many years ago.”

It has now been almost two years since my first fearful visit to Katy, Texas, and I feel wonderful. My son now refers to that time in my life as my “sick” period and he is certainly glad that it is over.

I was really young when my menopausal symptoms reared their ugly heads. No one believed it could happen so early and dismissed my symptoms and concerns. The Hotze Health and Wellness Center never once dismissed my symptoms or concerns. They educated me as to what was really happening to my body as a result of having my thyroid surgically removed, which started me prematurely on the path to menopause. Now, thanks to the Hotze Health and Wellness Center, it is not a journey that I dread taking, it is a change of life, one that is natural and comes with a different perspective. My daughter gave me a wonderful granddaughter to enjoy in my life, and had I not been blessed with The Hotze Health and Wellness Center, I would not be able to enjoy her as much as I do. Thank you, Dr. Ellsworth and your staff for giving me back my life.

Since my visit to Hotze, I have referred two people there. The first person I referred was from New Mexico and I met her while working briefly with her husband. After he heard me calling Dr. Ellsworth and talking to him about my medications, he talked to me about his wife. Ultimately, she went to The Hotze Health and Wellness Center and has had remarkable results. The second person that I referred was my friend who suffered uncontrollably from inhalant allergies and irritable bowel syndrome. Dr. Ellsworth worked with him, and although he is not allergy free, he no longer requires weekly injections and his irritable bowel syndrome is gone; no more Metamucil and no more pills to combat the pain that he endured for years. As a result of the expertise of the Hotze Health and Wellness Center, three lives have been given back to individuals who so desperately needed their help.

Can you relate to Stacey's story? Contact us today and let us help you get your life back!